Going Home

By Margaret Mayer Simon

Going Home is a collection of narrative short stories and accounts of the journey from life and through death--"their final chapters"--of a number of patients, family members, and close friends as I experienced it with them and their families. A person's date of birth is the beginning chapter, and death is the ending of the last chapter. Each story is unique and different as to what people may say, hear, see, or do at the moment of death and their entrance into eternity--their final home. Hopefully, the stories will help people understand and show the readers that the journey from life into death and eternal life does not have to be scary or feared. It can be a calm, peaceful, holy, sacred, and beautiful experience.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9798888329535

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Going Home

Margaret Mayer Simon

ISBN 979-8-88832-952-8 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88832-953-5 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Margaret Mayer Simon

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Introduction

A Perfect Day

The Dream

Job Well Done

The Gate

Talk with Jesus

Best Friends

On the Horizon

Home for the Holidays

The Timeline

The Sign

The Storm

The Box

The Bible

Buddies Forever

Ready for the Lord

The Rosary—the Crucifix—the Bible

The Professor

The Window

Angel Lady

The Party

Spirit in the Sky

Mama

Sandy

The Room

Yup

The Face

The Blind Will See

Conclusion

About the Author

Introduction

My career in the medical profession and having worked as a registered nurse for more than forty-seven years took me through many aspects of nursing, from acute care in the hospital setting to working twenty-seven years in a general practitioner's office to a short term in the correctional system and finally ten years with hospice home care.

Working in the hospital addresses acute care, and the general practitioner office addresses patients with chronic or long-standing conditions that will usually get better and live a normal life while hospice care addresses the direct opposite. The patients admitted to hospice are usually looking at death within six months.

My tenure with hospice home care was probably the most rewarding and gratifying as I developed close relationships with both the patient and their families during this crucial time in their lives. Many of these family relationships have continued to this day.

The following short stories reflect on some of the most memorable things that people may say, may see, or may hear as death approaches and oftentimes how their families are affected.

The old cliché that everybody has a story subsequently implies everybody has a final chapter. Our story starts at birth and ends at death, and someone once said, The day we are born is the day we begin to die.

In this book, I have written the final chapters for a number of family members, close friends, and loved ones and, of course, a number of patients I cared for during my time in hospice. It will not take too long before you realize why I used Going Home as the title for my book.

I did not realize the first time I had experience with death and dying that it was anything more than a normal patient who had died a normal death. It was only years later, while working with hospice patients, that I became aware and conscious of the unusual things that people may say, see, hear, or do whether consciously, subconsciously, or out of context. Death does not have to be painful or sad or scary. It can be and should be peaceful, calm, and sacred if everyone is prepared and accepting.

The more I reflect on these final chapters, the more I realize I was in the presence of saints as they entered heaven, as the definition of a saint is a heavenly body or soul that has earned its way into heaven.

How much more blessed can I ever expect to be?

1

A Perfect Day

It was September, the season had changed, and the days were cooler and shorter. It was time to start thinking about the soon-approaching winter and Michigan's cold temperatures.

The day started as it usually did when John and Elizabeth woke up at early dawn, said their prayers as they always did, and enjoyed their breakfast. John helped Elizabeth with the dishes as he always did, and then he went outside.

Since his retirement twelve years earlier, Pete's day always started with a walk along the fence lines of the eighty-acre farm to make sure the cattle were still secure. He fed the cattle and the chickens, and then he made sure they had plenty of water. While feeding the chickens, he decided to clean the chicken coop/brooder house and put fresh new straws in the nests to cradle the eggs.

Next on Pete's list was to put his garage back in order. As a long-time and seasoned mechanic, there was a marked place for every tool, and he expected it to be there when someone used it and returned it. He swept the garage floor and then scattered a thin layer of sawdust to absorb any spilled oil or grease.

It was lunchtime, so he returned to the house for some soup and a sandwich to be followed by a thirty-minute nap. While he was eating his lunch, he shared with Edna what he had been doing outside that morning and that he was planning to work inside for the rest of the day.

After his nap, Pete spent the next hour combing and brushing their faithful collie dog that had been their best friend for the past sixteen years. Their children had all grown up and dispersed throughout the world, only seeing them on special occasions for short periods. The grandchildren were growing up, and everyone had busy schedules.

There was one last job as the afternoon was coming to an end; the oil stove they used for heating needed to be winterized and the soot removed from all the galvanized aluminum pipes—a dirty job, but it had to be done to prevent smoke, fires, and back drafts during the winter. To make the stove look new, the final step was to take old rags or dishcloths, smother them with coal black and a bit of liquid oil, and then rub the entire surface down, making it shiny.

Day was done, and he was tired. Edna had fixed one of his favorite meals for dinner—scalloped potatoes and ham with custard for dessert. While they ate dinner, he reviewed with Edna that the cows were secure, the chickens had fresh nests and clean coop, the garage was in order, the collie had been groomed, and the heating stove was ready to fire up.

Day was done, and the evening was going to be just as